


Tic Tac Stony

by RossKL



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Bickering about dinner, Established Relationship, Fluff, Idiots in Love, M/M, Post-Avengers (2012), Post-Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie), Stealth suit, clint barton - Freeform, for the first chapter, mild endgame spoilers, outsider pov
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-28
Updated: 2019-05-01
Packaged: 2020-02-09 06:43:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,274
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18632887
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RossKL/pseuds/RossKL
Summary: Collection of two ficlets for the challenge Tic Tac Stony.First chapter: Tony works on Steve's suit.Second chapter: Clint watches Tony and Steve bickering over dinner.





	1. Experiment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony works on Steve's stealth suit.  
> Set post Avengers (2012).
> 
> Inspired from Avengers: Endgame.  
> MILD SPOILERS in the notes.

Tony tweaks and twists the hologram of Steve’s new prototype suit.

It’s Steve's birthday present, so he can only work on it when Steve is not in the workshop with him – and come to think of it, it doesn’t happen so often. Not when Steve’s in the Tower and not on missions.

Tony’s workshop has quickly become one of Steve’s favorite places to spend his free time. When Tony is in there, and Steve is not working out in the gym, or isn’t volunteering at the animal shelter right down the road, or isn’t cooking something for the whole team, Steve is in the workshop with him. He likes to relax there, keeping Tony company, sketching stuff and making sure Tony doesn’t accidentally set the lab on fire, or injures himself.

Tony enjoys it too much to call him out on his mother henning.

Right now, though, Steve is on a mission, so Tony can work unbothered and without having to be on constant alert. Jarvis warning him when someone approaches the workshop isn’t quite enough: he can’t put everything away that quickly and start focusing on something else before whoever it is – usually Steve himself – arrives.

Besides, Steve knows the override codes to get in as he pleases. They were supposed to be for emergencies only, at first, but with time they have sort of evolved into Steve’s free let in whenever Tony forgets to eat and has locked himself in, in order not to be disturbed.

Tony can’t even black out the windows and walls – that would raise questions, and he doesn’t have time to think about explanations.

He has to finish the suit before Steve comes back.

“Jarvis, I told you, you have to tighten it up in the lower regions.”

“Sir, I’m not sure that would be the best choice in terms of comfort for Mr. Rogers—”

Tony waves one hand in the air. “It doesn’t need to be comfortable. A snug fit helps his movements.”

It also helps Steve’s ass. Tony can’t believe Coulson designed that childish outfit Steve’s wearing these days, without even paying attention to his form. Not only it’s very flashy and outdated, it also fits loosely on Steve’s body.

If you ask Tony, that’s very much illegal.

Steve has a body built by the gods. Nobody seems to appreciate it enough.

Like always, Tony has to do all the work himself.

“With all due respect, Sir, I don’t think Captain Rogers’ enhanced reflexes suffer all that much from loose fitted pants.”

Tony silently agrees. Instead, he says, “That’s because you’ve never seen him in action, J. He could do better, trust me.”

Tony’s eyes would be much more pleased, too.

Not that anyone has to know.

Jarvis silently adjust the model of the suit like Tony demands. Tony twists it a little, working on every angle and manually tightening the suit’s measurements where doable.

Tony has spent a great amount of time in watching Steve’s body, alright. They often spar together, and when Tony is not down in the workshop, he always seems to gravitate around Steve.

This leaves him with a fairly big amount of time, where he can take in Steve’s form: when he’s cooking and has his back on Tony, when he’s stretching out to take something not close by, when he’s simply sitting on the sofa, calm and relaxed, and Tony can see the rise and fall of his broad chest as Steve breathes.

There’s almost nothing Tony doesn’t know about Steve’s body, by now.

—Not that he wouldn’t like to eliminate the ‘almost’. Tony is sure Steve is proportional all around, and he really wants to know how Steve’s frame would look like with Tony on his knees in front of him—

Tony shakes himself back to reality. He can’t get distracted; not right now, when the suit is almost finished.

The size is almost perfect, so Tony focuses on the design. He ponders for a moment. “You know what, J, make everything darker.”

Jarvis diminishes the brightness of the blue and adds some gray here and there. Tony is still not a hundred percent satisfied. “Remove the red, please.”

Jarvis complies. “Should I remove the white, too, Sir?”

“No, leave it.” Tony takes another look at the 3D hologram, turning it around again. “I wonder if… Try rendering it as stealth, J.”

Jarvis changes some of the fabric and adjust the colors just so.

Tony looks at the suit in front of him. “Perfect.” _God_. The mere thought of Steve wearing _that_ is enough to leave him dizzy, blood rushing to the southern region of his body.

He takes a final look at it, turns it around and makes some final, manual modification at the measurements and details.

When it’s over, Tony enlarges the blueprints in natural size, then takes a step back to admire the suit.

“Happy birthday to _me_ ,” he mutters under his breath.

Jarvis doesn’t reply.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's now basically canon that Tony made the stealth suit to show off Mr. Rogers' ass. (Not that we didn't know that already.)


	2. Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint watches Tony and Steve bickering over dinner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Post Avengers: Age of Ultron.

_“That’s the Endgame. How are you guys planning on beating that?”_

_“Together.”_

_“We’ll lose.”_

_“Then we’ll do that together too.”_

Ever since the mess with Ultron, the Avengers seems to have made it their personal mission to stick together, on missions, at home, everywhere they could.

 _“Like the old man said,_ together _.”_

In particular, Tony and Steve seem to have committed to it, as if they took an unbreakable vow in Tibet or something. Clint is sure they didn’t move from the Avengers Compound, but he isn’t one hundred percent certain that they didn’t convene a Monk or a Priest to formally bind them to the promise.

Their over-the-top behavior could only have that one explanation, after all.

Natasha says they’re fucking. Clint prefers the vow theory.

After all, Steve and Tony have always been close. Now, they’re just… closer. More attached. It’s nothing particularly different than before – nothing that would justify their friendship turning into a _relationship_. They’re simply… Yeah, closer.

_“That’s because they were fucking even before Ultron, but Tony had the constant drawback of hiding that project from Steve. Now he’s got nothing to hide.”_

Clint is still skeptical about Nat’s explanation.

Sure, he didn’t spend as much time as her in the Tower – his family needed him: the only reason he’s stayed at the compound a bit more this time is so he could keep Nat company after Bruce’s disappearance – but he’s a spy, just like her.

He would have noticed if the two leads of the Avengers slash his friends were fucking. He’s Hawkeye, for God’s sake.

Clint watches Tony and Steve from his seat on the kitchen table as he nurses his beer. He’s waiting for Friday to finish assembling his new arrows and then he’s leaving.

That should be any minute now, Tony said they would be ready before six, and the man is nothing but precise, about technology.

This means he is now free to spend some time with Steve and Tony alone, and what he sees makes him frown, _at least_.

They’re both leaning on the kitchen counter, engrossed in their conversation like Clint’s not even there. It would be perfectly normal, if they were talking about a new schematic or a new training project.

But right now, they’re discussing _dinner_.

“I mean it, Steve, I can’t do it.”

“You are a genius, Tony, I’m sure you’ll outsmart some boring cooking.”

“You say that now. Wait until I try lifting up a spoon. I once grilled a toast in the _microwave_.”

“You put— okay, ouch, don’t hit me because I had an honest reaction. How about this, I’ll make sure you won’t do anything harmful or sacrilegious?”

“But where would the fun _be_ in that?”

“We’ll enjoy a homemade dinner, it’ll make us feel proud that we applied ourselves to something out of our field expertise, and succeeded.”

“The only thing we’ll succeed in is wasting time that could be spent in a very different way.”

“Come on, it’s just one time! We have plenty of time to do… other stuff.”

“’ _Other stuff_ ’? Mr. Rogers, are you shy all of a sudden?”

“I just don’t want to scar our teammate here. We need all of them sharp and focused.”

“It’s just Clint. And he’s just about to go home. Once there, he can relax and forget about it plenty.”

“And can enjoy a decent, homemade meal, too.”

“From someone who can actually cook, yes.”

Clint’s been following the whole conversation with only part of his brain. He’s thinking about seeing Laura, hugging his little ones… That is until one of them mentions his name.

He focuses on the scene in front of him, trying to decide what’s the best smartass comeback he could pull off. Their tit for tat is not hard to follow, so that’s not slows to a stop his attempt to reply.

Steve and Tony are not paying attention to him.

In fact, they’re looking at each other, close – as in, physically close – enough that there’s not even a foot between them, and they’re looking into each other’s eyes and trying to hide their grin as they bicker.

That oddly looks _a lot_ like a couple-y thing.

Clint is pretty certain he and Laura make a similar picture, right before watching something on TV, or right before going to bed.

_Oh God._

Natasha’s words come back to his mind, her tone somewhat more smug than how he remembered. “ _They’re fucking_ , _Clint_.”

Clint is not going to assume that just because the two of them are talking a little closer than normal.

Sure, there’s that, and there’s Steve spending a great amount of time in Tony’s workshop, and yeah, they spar together, and eat together, and also _always_ sit next to each other during movie nights and disappear together for the night…

Suddenly, making a list of all the things Tony and Steve do together doesn’t seem the best idea of his life. Clint feels his sicker by the minute, his cheeks going paler and paler the more details he notices.

After a battle, Tony flies home Steve and Steve only – he never took anyone else with him. They go to public events together. They occasionally eat dinner together, somewhere. They…

 _Ha_! In the mornings, they don’t arrive for breakfast together.

Clint almost counts that as a win – before remembering that Steve usually goes jogging in the morning and Tony doesn’t.

Clint stares at the scene in front of him, Tony and Steve still bickering, still very much close to each other, and the realization hits him like a full-speed train.

 _Oh, God_.

The two leaders of the Avengers – and his friends – are fucking together. But also, _fucking_ together.

Clint needs brain bleach.

That’s something he would have never, ever, _ever_ wanted to know – there was a reason why he firmly rejected Nat’s words. He doesn’t want to know what Steve and Tony are up to, when they’re alone – violation of privacy, boundaries, not his business, nope, thanks.

Clint makes a mental note not to ever question team relationships again.

“When you’ve done bickering like the married couple you are,” he begins, and that catches the others’ attention, “You could tell me when my arrows are gonna be ready. Then I can leave you two alone,” Clint finishes, watching them.

They’re both turned towards him now. Steve’s blushing a little and has a light frown on his brow; Tony is smirking at him, a hint of surprise in his eyes. “What makes you think we’re together, Clint?”

They don’t even step away from each other. Clint rolls his eyes hard.

“You’re literally one inch away from melting into each other, man.”

Tony starts laughing at the same time Steve tries to step away. Tony turns to him and buries his head into Steve’s chest, giggles still shaking his body. “Tony—” Steve says, a little warning in his tone. He has the worst, biggest fond expression on his face.

Tony just waves a hand at him, trying to will down his giggles.

Then he looks at Clint, head still on Steve’s chest.

“I can’t believe of all the people who would figure it out, _you_ ’d be the first one,” Tony tells him, amused, putting a hand on Steve’s chest and moving his head back.

“Hey,” is Clint’s first reaction. Then he hesitates for a moment. He thinks of Nat’s reaction when she’ll know that Clint called dibs on _her_ intuition, and mentally flinches. “Actually, Nat already figured it out,” Clint says, focusing his gaze on Steve.

Steve’s still sort of tense, but he’s also smiling and shaking his head. “Of course she would be the first to figure it out,” he says, tone affectionate.

“I wonder how she refrained to comment thought,” Tony says, a smirk still on his face. His hand still hasn’t left Steve’s chest.

“Could you please—”

“Sir, Hawkeye’s new prototype arrows are assembled,” Friday’s voice interrupts Clint.

“Oh thank God,” Clint sighs, standing up. He’s so ready to leave that kitchen.

“Aww baby, what’s the rush?” Tony asks him, still joking. Steve stiffens next to him at the nickname. He brings his hand around Tony’s waist and pulls him just a tiny bit closer.

Tony doesn’t even notice.

Clint wishes he hadn’t noticed.

“I wanna leave you two alone probably _more_ than you want to be alone,” Clint deadpans. “Trust me.”

This time, they both laugh.

Then Tony gets on his tiptoes and kisses Steve’s mouth.

Clint never turned around this fast, in his life.

“Worse than teenagers,” he mutters. He hears the muffled laughter behind him as he leaves the kitchen behind, beer long forgotten on the table.

He needs something stronger than beer.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know if you liked it! :)


End file.
